Law and Rights
Parking Eye Ltd v Barry Beavis [2015] EWCA Civ 402 is an interesting case heard by the Court of Appeal (Civil Division) in April 2015. In the County Court (before His Honour Judge Moloney QC), Mr Beavis had lost his claim to recover a charge of £85 for overstaying in a car park at Riverside Retail Park in Chelmsford. Mr Beavis took the case to the Court of Appeal where the County Court decision was upheld.
There is a long standing rule of law that the courts will not enforce unconscionable charges but when will that rule be applied? That is the principal interest in this case. The Court of Appeal considered that whether a charge is justifiable is not simply a matter of
what can be justified commercially but whether the charge is justified by a combination of factors including social factors. In this instance, the charge was upheld. The court said (para 30) - 'There are obvious benefits to both consumers and retail businesses in having free or cheap car parking available close to the shops for limited periods. That can be achieved only if there is some mechanism for ensuring that in most cases those who make use of the facilities do not abuse them by overstaying. That would not be achieved by a scale of charges graduated by reference to the length of the overstay unless they were sufficient to act as a deterrent. Moreover, the amount of the charge, however, calculated, would have to be large enough to justify collection.'
Please read Graham Green's article in Law Society Gazette 8th June 2015.
Update: - the case will be heard by the Supreme Court of the UK on 21st July. I am grateful to BMPA EU for this information.
See also UK Supreme Court - Parking Penalty Charge Appeal
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Law and Rights
Car Parking ~ £85 overstay charge upheld
There is a long standing rule of law that the courts will not enforce unconscionable charges but when will that rule be applied? That is the principal interest in this case. The Court of Appeal considered that whether a charge is justifiable is not simply a matter of
what can be justified commercially but whether the charge is justified by a combination of factors including social factors. In this instance, the charge was upheld. The court said (para 30) - 'There are obvious benefits to both consumers and retail businesses in having free or cheap car parking available close to the shops for limited periods. That can be achieved only if there is some mechanism for ensuring that in most cases those who make use of the facilities do not abuse them by overstaying. That would not be achieved by a scale of charges graduated by reference to the length of the overstay unless they were sufficient to act as a deterrent. Moreover, the amount of the charge, however, calculated, would have to be large enough to justify collection.'
Please read Graham Green's article in Law Society Gazette 8th June 2015.
Update: - the case will be heard by the Supreme Court of the UK on 21st July. I am grateful to BMPA EU for this information.
@ObiterJ Permission granted. Funds raised. QC appointed and date now set for 21st July. Joined with UKSC 2013/0280 - Cavendish v Makdessi? BMPA Association (@BMPA_EU) June 10, 2015See also UK Supreme Court - Parking Penalty Charge Appeal
- Criminal Courts Charge Disappears On Christmas Eve ..... Government Reviewing Financial Orders
UPDATE 29th January 2016 - Report of Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments raising question over how the charge was removed Details of the Criminal Courts Charge are in this post of 30th July 2015. In a speech to the Magistrates' Association,...
- Criminal Courts Charge - Justice Committee Report
The House of Commons Justice Committee has expressed grave misgivings about whether the Criminal Courts Charge is compatible with the principles of justice - READ THE REPORT. The levels of the charge are criticised as grossly disproportionate to...
- It's In The Bag ....!
Five pence per plastic carrier bag! I am all for protecting the environment as far as we can and so I assume that the carrier bag idea is a sensible innovation - The Telegraph 4th October - Carrier Bag 5p charge: Everything you need to know. ...
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On 13th April, the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 (Criminal Courts Charge) Regulations 2015 enter into force. They are well explained in this article in the Law Society Gazette 27th March. Suspects pleading not guilty in the Crown court will risk...
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"Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see" - John W. Whitehead - "The Stealing of America" - 1983. The question of whether children and young persons are permitted to give evidence in court has a long and convoluted history. ...